Cleopatra's Pool - Spring of Juba Siwa

Today we were to see the temples and springs of Siwa. The original settlement in the oasis was Aghurmi. A temple to Amun was built here by the Pharaohs. Alexander the Great visited this temple and was declared a Pharaoh by the priests (they knew how to keep their jobs!). A governor, a hundred or so years ago, decided that he needed the stone of …

In Egypt, Friday is a holiday. It is a day when kids do not have to go to school and most businesses are closed. But, we were able to get up early and tour the city before things shut almost completely down in the afternoon.

It was Omar's turn to try and put some meat on our bones. Our meal consisted of dates, cheese, falafel, pita, juice …

... picking up some really cool rocks, I won't bore you with all the Temple talk. To round out the morning, we stopped by Cleopatra's pool for a swim. This fresh water spring was amazing to wash off the dust. All the tour books said that women would be ...

... notice that they're Egyptian, but don't think bringing that up would get me anywhere. Hung out parts of both days at Cleopatra's Pool, a spring a little outside town.  Had a smoothie at the bar (no alcohol in Siwa), and watched some local kids ...

... while the rest of it laid in broken chunks. After some heavy duty research and a thesis I can claim that there is a Cleopatra's Pool in every Oasis. Are they as pretty and well kept as this one in Siwa...debatable. Did Cleopatra really bathe ...

... most things in Egypt) and again gave good views from the top.   The final stop for us on the bikes was Cleopatra's Bath where we were able to take a refreshing dip in the perfect temperature water. An amazing smoothie was waiting for me once I ...